a simple act
by mcswarekblue
Summary: about Andy going undercover and all the fallout from the night she left when Sam told her he loved her while holding the grenade.
1. Chapter 1

Andy knew she wasn't supposed to tell anyone she was going undercover, she didn't even know who her partner was yet. But after today, after what Sam had just told her, she felt like she had to let him know that she would be gone. He had asked her to meet him at the penny so they could have a drink, talk and hopefully start over, but directly after that Luke swooped in and offered her a spot on the task force, he said he needed her answer in 5 minutes. Andy hoped she could catch Sam in the parking lot before he left for the Penny! She saw him closing the door after throwing his bag in the back! "Sam! Wait!" he turned around to the sound of her voice, she was getting closer now so he didn't have to speak loud "McNally… I thought you were going to meet me there… do you not have a ride?"

"No actually, uh Sam I have to talk to you about something."

"Yeah, anything."

"I can't actually come to the Penny tonight…" she paused and took a deep breath in "I can't because I am going to be out of town for a little while."

"What? Where are you going?"

"I uh… I'm not really supposed to be talking about this so uh…" he nodded and took a step closer as she lowered her voice "I am going to be UC for a while…" Sam knows better than anyone the dangers of undercover work, his mind was in a panic. She watched his face waiting for a response. He was silent for a long time and then finally he spoke,

"McNally…" he paused, he knew how this all went and knew she wasn't supposed to be saying anything at all, he needed to choose his next words carefully "any time frame?" he looked distraught.

"Between 5 and 8 months they said" he exhaled deeply with concern, the longer the case the more dangerous and that was quite a while.

"When are you leaving?"

"Tomorrow in the am, Callaghan said to expect a call any time after eight."

"Then why can't you come tonight?" She sighed deeply, she didn't want to say this but she needed to!

"Because I can't do that to you, or myself, act normal for a night and be gone for months again. I don't think I could fake it in front of everyone anyway. I also have a lot to think about, I don't think I am ready to let you in again. You broke up with me in a parking lot and have barely said ten words to me since, I just don't know Sam."

"Will you at least come over for a drink? And just talk to me?... please?"


	2. the decision

Andy looked at him quizzically, she couldn't understand why he would still want her, why he would still want to try, why after her saying that she was leaving for about half a year he would still want her to come over. She stayed silent for a moment, just watching his face. He looked sad and sort of tired, like if this didn't work he would just give up. She half smiled and saw a glimmer of hope in his eyes. Then he flashed his dimples knowing she couldn't resist, she laughed and rolled her eyes. She reached down into her pocket, pulled out her phone and dialed a number. The person on the other line picked up on the first ring.

"Callaghan" he said with a gruff voice, he sounded tired.

"Luke, count me in okay."

"Andy, thanks that's great" he trailed off and explained some brief details and then said "Someone will give you a call in the morning when they are ready for you, should we call you at home?" He said that with a weird tone to his voice, almost hoping that she would be staying at home tonight without the company of anyone else. She didn't know but he had heard Sam talking to Andy outside of the locker rooms before he gave her the offer, even though he and Andy were completely over, he still had some unresolved feelings for her and was hoping that she would not go home with Swarek.

"Uhm..." she thought for a second. She decided to be optimistic and hope that their one drink would go well and she would end up staying the night. "No my cell phone would be better." Luke scoffed slightly annoyed,

"Alright, get some sleep and _enjoy your evening"_ the tone he put on the last pert told Andy that he knew where she was going, or at least he assumed it.

"Are we going?" she said softly to Sam as he gestured towards the truck and opened Andy's door for her than ran around the back of his truck and got into the driver's side, started the vehicle and backed out of the parking lot.

The drive back to Sam's place was pretty quiet, it wasn't an awkward silence but she just had no words for him. She had missed him so much but also didn't want to seem weak, she just kept replaying the events that happened earlier in her mind. _"I love you… Andy"_ she kept playing that over in her head _"I meant what I said" _she couldn't believe that the man that never opened up when they were together just spilled his heart out to her six weeks _after _they broke up. She knew she still loved him but just didn't know if she should be with him. It took her a while to see it but what he said about not being able to be a cop and be with her was finally starting to make sense to her. She was actually starting to agree. Maybe they weren't meant to be together, or maybe it's just crappy timing, either way she wanted it to work… just didn't see how it could.

When they walked into Sam's place Andy was slightly surprised, Sam had mentioned something about not being the cleanest it's ever been. It wasn't disgusting but in no way was it clean, when did Sam start being so messy… was it when they broke up? Was it because of her? It couldn't be… but maybe, just maybe, it was.

He walked over to his fridge and grabbed two beers and removed the lids, he handed one to Andy and took a sip out of the other one. They sat at the counter where he cleared off some of the papers that were in a cluster and threw them on the kitchen table. They both sat in silence for a few minutes not knowing what to say but suddenly Sam broke the silence.

"McNally…" he said softly "I'm sorry" his eyes looked sad "I really am, I was grieving and I didn't know how to deal with it. It had nothing to do with my feelings for you, I just couldn't imagine losing another person that I was attached to so I thought that if I distanced myself from you and something happened to you that it wouldn't hurt as much, but I saw today that I could've lost you, and not being with you, like really with you through it made me realize that this job is dangerous, but never having anyone because of it just makes it not worth it anymore" he took a long deep breath and studied her face, she looked as if she was about to cry, the same look she had earlier right before he told her he loved her.

She looked down for a second and then looked back up at him and said quietly "I know we all grieve in different ways but I needed you to…" her voice caught and she stopped talking and just looked down, she set her beer down on the counter. He reached over and placed his hand on the back of her neck with his thumb resting on her cheek, she looked up and he saw a tear fall as he wiped it away, she hated him seeing her like this, all vulnerable and sad. She didn't like "needing" anyone, but she did. She needed him. He spoke again.

"I am so sorry, I wish I could redo it but I…" she stood up at the "sorry" and waited until the "but I" and suddenly she couldn't wait anymore, she grabbed the back of his head and pushed her lips to his, he stood up and set his beer on the counter still kissing her, he pulled her in closer and she put her arms around the back of his neck. He only stopped kissing her for a moment so try and read the situation. She had the same look on her face now as she did that first night "JD and Candice" had spent together, that fiery passion in her eyes. He lifter her legs to put them around his waist and started kissing her again, he walked to his bedroom and kicked his door closed behind him and laid her down on the bed, her hands rested on his chest as he threw his jacket off, she wrestled with his shirt until he pulled it over his head and started unbuttoning her shirt, he noticed as he pulled it off of her that it was the same shirt she had been wearing when they went back to his cover apartment after meeting him at the alpine. She felt so right with him, he made her so incredibly happy, but what scared her is that he could take that away at any moment, and he made that clear when he left her standing in the rain, in that parking lot crying. She had thoughts of that night but almost as soon as they came she pushed them out because that was then and she wanted to move past that with him.


	3. undercover

She woke up the next morning and she felt peaceful. She looked over at Sam who was already watching her, he leaned over and kissed her. She had a smile on her face, only until her phone rang and Callaghan told her that she needed to be at the station by 11am, she check the clock _8:17 _it read. She got off the phone and let Sam know, he offered to make some breakfast and then take her to her place to grab some clothes and make sure everything is turned off and unplugged. He knew what it was like going undercover so he would be helpful knowing what to do to ready your apartment to be left for months on end. She agreed to letting him make them both breakfast. She knew the needed to talk a little bit before she left and she knew that she couldn't let him take her to the station because not that it was a huge deal but that would reassure Luke that Sam knew she was going undercover and she didn't want to get in any trouble.

She had sort of forgotten that she had to leave that morning until Luke had phoned, it's not that she didn't want to go but after last night she didn't want to leave and have to start all over again with Sam in 6 months. She also didn't even know if he would want to wait for her, what if it got to be too much and he couldn't wait anymore. Their talking had got a little bit… interrupted you could say. She didn't know how to bring it up to him but she wanted to know what he was thinking about them.

"McNally… if you want to get to your house on time to do some packing and get a cab back to the station you have to get out of bed and eat!" He had a huge smile on his face because she had always been late getting out of bed, she turned over to look at him standing over by his dresser and laughed. She got changed and hurried to the kitchen to eat with him before they had to go! Their conversation was very light all through their breakfast filled with playful banter and laughing. She had to talk to him about where they stood after last night.

They got into the car and started on their way to Andy's, it was already 9:30 and she still had to back and get a cab back to the station before 11! "Sam can we talk?" she interrupted whatever he was saying and he looked at her with a confused smirk on his face.

"What do you mean, we are talking" he laughed.

"Not about just anything…" he looked back at her amused knowing exactly what she was going to say, taking quick glances back at the road in front of them.

"Sure McNally, what would you like to talk about on this fine morning?" he played dumb… she did not catch on.

"Well you know, I'm going away for a while" he laughed, but she shot him a look and he tried to hold it in "and I just want to know what you are thinking… you know, about us"

He didn't know why she looked so nervous, he had told her last night that he was going to show her every single day, that he was going to work at their relationship and make everything work until she said yes. Why was it even a question?

"McNally, what do you mean? Are you asking if I am going to wait for you? Because that is a stupid question, I'm here to stay, and I will be here waiting for you when you get back." She smiled huge and she had a little sparkle in her eye, one that he hadn't seen since the night before Gail got abducted, she seemed more than satisfied with that answer and she reached over to hold his free hand, he gave her hand a squeeze.

When they arrived at Andy's a few minutes after she called the cab company and asked for a cab to be at her house at 10:40 so that she could make it back to the station in time, then she ran around in a frenzy trying to fill a bag with clothes and makeup and a book or two but nothing personal, Luke had made that very clear. Sam watched and laughed as she frantically dug through her drawers, he hadn't been at her place in a while, it still smelled the same and looked pretty much the same too, he felt at home here and he smiled to himself. Wow he had missed her so much, he obviously noticed it but hadn't realized how bad it was until he had kissed her last night or been in her house today.

"Sam could you make sure my water is shut off I can't remember how to do it" he laughed and walked to her furnace room and turned off her water, but not before filling a jug just in case she needed some before she left. He walked back into her room and said "hey I work at 10:30 so I should really get going" she looked at the clock and it was 10:05, she stood up and walked over to him.

"Oh, okay well I will see you in a few months then…" she looked as if she was going to cry, so he cupped his hands around the outside of her face and kissed her forehead.

"Andy, please be careful, you know it is dangerous on the streets but undercover is a whole other story, please just be extremely careful, please." He looked down and kissed her very passionately and when he pulled back he saw a single tear fall from her eyes and he wiped it away "I will be waiting here for you Andy, I'll be right here" she took a deep breath and promised him she would be extra careful and kissed him once more and then that was it, he was gone and she wouldn't see him for at least another 5 months, she was sad.

She finished packing and locked her door as the cab pulled up, she looked at the outside of her house and took a deep breath, and it was time. She got into the cab and told him that she needed to be dropped off at 15 division and he took her straight there. The cab pulled up at 10:55, she paid the driver and got out of the cab, Luke was waiting in the parking lot and told her to get into the vehicle and that they would be going to the secondary location in a moment. When she got in she saw Nick sitting in the front seat. "Wait, you are my partner?" she giggled.

"It appears so!" he smiled back, excited to have a partner that he knew and had a friendship with. Luke got in before they could talk anymore and told them that they were going to meet their guy and explained the assignment briefly and just like that they were getting into the other car and that was it, they were officially gone. No more contact with the outside world for the duration of the assignment, she took a deep breath to calm herself down, she closed her eyes and fell asleep for the rest of the car ride.


	4. ready to come home

_5 months later…._

Andy and Nick were in their cover apartment watching tv, her legs stretched across his. He looked over at her as she laughed at something funny on the tv and suddenly said "you're perfect". She stopped laughing and looked over at him with a straight face.

"Uh thanks…" she blushed, she was very confused what made him say this…

He was still looking at her and very quietly said "seriously Andy, you are perfect in every way, and you are all I want" she got up immediately and went to get a glass of water, she was red, she could feel it taking over her face like a rash. Nick followed close behind her, she turned back around and started to say something but was interrupted by Nick who grabbed her face and kissed her! She pulled back immediately

"Nick, what are you doing…" despite how startled she was, her voice was calm

"Andy I-"

"Nick no, I told you what happened with Sam… I can't do this" she was stern but soft "You have Gail and Sam means everything to me" Nick looked sad, he walked to the bedroom and closed the door, Andy didn't know what to do so she decided to go for a run, clear her head.

"_Why would he do this now, he knows we are going back in a few days, I just don't get it. Why start a bunch of drama right before we get back, this is so stupid" _she kept running, she had a few more kilometers left before she had to go back.

When she got back Nick had dinner cooked and the table set, there were flowers in a vase in the middle of the table.

"Hey Andy" he smiled

"Uh hi…" she really didn't want things to be awkward and he was really attractive, she had never denied that, but her man was waiting for her back home! Besides he had a girlfriend waiting back home, this was all stupid and she didn't think of him this way, they were best friends and she wanted it to stay like that. It was going to stay like that. "I'm just going to change and brush out my hair then I will come eat" she kind of half smiled. She was just ready to be home again, with her friends and her dad, and Sam.

"Okay just hurry out, I don't want it to get cold!" he smiled as she walked into the bedroom.

She washed her face, changed her clothes and brushed out her hair and then went out to join him at the table.

As she sat down she looked at all of the great looking food on the table and then looked up to smile at him "Oh my gosh Nick this all looks so good! I didn't really know you cooked"

"Yeah well my mom always told me since I was little that girls want a guy that can cook so I started

early. Dig in!" She knew what he was trying to do and knew she needed to resist, but was also really hungry so she ate and told him the food was quite good but didn't want to be too nice. After they ate she told him that she was really tired and she was going to bed, it was her night in the bedroom so she got into her pajamas and slid into bed. She was really happy that they didn't have a job tonight, she just needed to sleep. As she was getting into bed she got word that there were some budget cuts recently and that their boss was told to wrap it up quickly.

_A few days later_

Things had been moving very fast this past week, they knew it must be coming to an end and they were both excited to get back to their old lives and get back to work and see their friends, she just didn't know what it was going to be like to see Sam again, she was beyond nervous.

(The events of 4x01 happen, stopping just as they get back to the station)

Andy and Nick went around hugging everyone, Andy couldn't stop thinking about Sam and his reaction when he found them in the truck, how he smiled so big and then remembered nick was there and he tried to control it, he was out of breath, she was almost crying. She couldn't even think about talking to everyone and spilling their uc stories to their friends and coworkers until she saw Sam, and hugged him.

She walked into the D's office and hugged Traci and told her she had missed her, Traci asked her some question that she didn't really hear and then she tried to answer it, but she was in a fluster and Traci could see that.

"Andy…" she smiled at her, Andy stopped freaking out and took a deep breath

"Yeah?" she was starting to calm down a tiny bit

"I think he's in the kitchen…"

"Okay, thanks" and then she was gone, she was headed toward the kitchen and she couldn't mask the smile on her face.

The second she entered the kitchen the look on Sam's face almost made her cry, he looked so happy, he immediately put down his coffee and rushed over to her, she was walking almost as fast as he was, finally they were together, he hugged her tightly, they were both breathing heavily. He pushed back from their embrace and he put his hands around her face, he pushed some hair off of her face with his right hand, and then he couldn't wait anymore, he had been waiting all day for this and he wasn't going to wait any longer, he pulled her in and kissed her quickly. Tingles shot through his entire body as they kissed, Andy felt like she was going to collapse into is arms, and they knew they were at work and couldn't take it too far but they hadn't seen each other in over 5 months, Sam knew frank wouldn't be angry about this. They stopped kissing for two seconds just so Sam could get another look at her and they heard someone clear their throat. They both stopped and looked to the door where that sound came from. It was a woman Andy had never seen before, she was average height with extremely dark hair and a pretty face.

"Officers don't we have any paperwork we could be doing? Especially after today" She sounded stern.

Andy didn't know this woman but she already was not fond of her, Sam's body tightened when she walked in, she could tell that he wasn't her number one fan either.

"Officer Cruz, this is officer McNally. McNally this is Cruz, she transferred to 15 about a month after you went uc" Sam seemed quite frustrated with this woman, which made Andy a bit uncomfortable with her.

"Uh hi Officer Cruz, it's nice to meet you" She walked toward the woman to shake her hand but the woman just said

"Nice to meet you" and then walked away without shaking her hand.

Andy whipped back around to Sam and gave him a look like "What the hell is wrong with this woman and why does she make you so uncomfortable and why does she hate me without knowing me and what is in the past with you two" Sam just smiled and shrugged it off, he walked back over to Andy.

"Don't worry about her, listen I have a bunch of paperwork and a couple cases to look over tonight, I'm sure you will be in debrief all night but if you get out earlier than expected and need someone to come over, just call me okay?" he leaned down and kissed the top of her head.

She looked up and smiled "Alright, I will" she was so happy, she had always only wanted him, and she finally had him.


End file.
